1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the protection of integrated circuits from electrostatic discharge (ESD), and more particularly to the protection of high voltage NMOS transistors by a parasitic silicon controlled rectifier (SCR) which triggers at a very low voltage.
2. Description of the Related Art
The protection of integrated circuits from electrostatic discharge (ESD) is a subject which has received a lot of attention from circuit designers because of the serious damage that ESD can wreak as device dimensions are reduced. Workers in the field and inventors have proposed many solutions, many trying to solve the problem of protecting sub-micron devices while still allowing them to function unencumbered and without undue, or zero, increase of silicon real estate. The main thrust of ESD protection for MOS devices is focused on the use of parasitic npn and pnp bipolar transistors, which together form a silicon controlled rectifier (SCR). Unwanted as this SCR normally is, it can safely discharge dangerous ESD voltages as long as its trigger voltage is low enough to protect those MOS devices of which it is a part.
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-section of a high voltage n-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) device structure of the prior art showing a p-substrate 11, an n-type doped drain (ndd) area 12 with an n+ drain 13, and an n+ source 14 with a lightly doped drain (ldd) implant 15. A polysilicon gate 17 with sidewall spacers 18 on either side covers the space between the drain 13 and the source 14.
FIG. 2 is a cross section of an implementation of the same structure as shown in FIG. 1, showing four n-channel transistors T1 to T4 in a p-substrate 11. Transistor T1 is comprised of n+ source 14, gate 17, ndd area 12 with an n+ drain 13 diffused into it. Transistor T2 is comprised of the same ndd area 12 with n+ drain 13, gate 218, and n+ source 220, which is connected to ground. A p+ region 222 is implanted adjacent to n+ source 14 and both are connected to ground 229. As is evident from FIG. 2, transistors T3 and T4 are mirror images of transistors T1 and T2. This arrangement can be repeated as many times as necessary and depends on the current capacity desired. Note parasitic bipolar npn transistors Q1 and Q2, their emitters, bases, and collectors formed by n+ sources 14 and 220, p-substrate 11 and ndd area 12, respectively. Their bases are connected to p+ region 222 via parasitic resistors R1, where these resistors symbolize the intrinsic resistance of p-substrate 11. Transistors T3 and T4 along with parasitic npn bipolar transistors Q3 and Q4 form a mirror image to the arrangement comprised of transistors T1, T2, Q1, and Q2.
FIG. 3 is the equivalent-circuit diagram of FIG. 2. It is apparent that the n-channel transistors T1 to T4 and parasitic npn transistor Q1 to Q4 are paralleled and that their bases are tied to ground via resistors R1. This explains why the electrostatic discharge (ESD) failure threshold voltage of the high voltage NMOS devices is very low, because its snapback voltage is very high, sometimes as high as 10 Volt or more. Despite the high and unstable snapback voltage power damage still occurs.
Other related art is described in the following U.S. Patents which propose low voltage lateral SCRs (LVTSCR), modified lateral SCRs (MLSCR), PMOS-trigger lateral SCRs (PTLSCR), NMOS-trigger lateral SCRs (NTLSCR), and modified PTLSCRs and NTLSCRs to control electrostatic discharge:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,959,820 (Ker et al.) proposes two or more cascoded low voltage triggering SCRs (LVTSCR) which are cascoded in series by coupling control gates in common and with an anode and a cathode of an LVTSCR coupled between the power supplies. Other devices utilized are and NMOS-controlled lateral SCRs (NCLSCR) and PMOS-controlled lateral SCRs (PCLSCR) PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 5,894,153 (Walker et al.) describes an integrated circuit with a pad which is protected by an SCR which conducts ESD pulses from the pad to a current sink. The SCR includes a subregion underneath a field oxide that has a field implant that increases the dopant concentration. The field implant lowers the SCR trigger voltage, so that the SCR triggers before an ESD pulse can cause latchup damage. PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 5,541,801 (Lee et al.) uses three LVTSCRs which are connected between V.sub.dd, the circuit to be protected, and V.sub.ss. Each of the SCRs uses a PMOS/NMOS transistor to lower the trigger voltage. The gates of the PMOS/NMOS transistors are each in turn connected via linked terminals of trigger gates to the circuit to be protected. PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,436 (Cheng) teaches the use of a non-LDD NMOS junction which forms the equivalent npn transistor of the protective SCR structure. The abrupt drain junction produces a lower avalanche breakdown voltage than the LDD junction and triggers the SCR during an ESD pulse.
It should be noted that none of the above-cited examples of the related art utilize a p+ diffusion and an n-well to the high voltage NMOS drain side to provide a snap-back voltage of less than 2 Volt, a high Human Body Model (HBM) ESD Passing Voltage of up to 8 kVolt, as is proposed subsequently.